Custom White's Boots ... Thoughts?

[linafelt]

Couple of questions for Whites owners, I'd appreciate anything you can contribute:

3) I'm planing on lining the boots and I've read that the tan lining will stain your socks. One-off issue, or common?
4) Is anyone able to post some unstructured toe pictures of their Whites?

I have the tan lining, and have never noticed any staining, though I tend to wear them with dark brown or dark blue socks I guess.

The pics attached are not my boots, but show natural CXL, unstructured, with some wear.

 

[American_Psycho11]

Hi all,

New to the site and figured I should introduce myself to the conversation after trolling through all 900 pages of this Whites forum... I'm looking to update my casual boot stash and I've landed on Whites. Full disclosure, I work in a laid-back office, so none of these are will be work boots, although I appreciate the indestructible nature of work boots in my casual footwear. My current stash is below - lots of RWs and some Zamberlans.

I'm mostly leaning towards "6 55 last Bounty Hunters with an unstructured toe. I've seen some photos of similar boots in the 900 prior pages, but not many. Most of the pictures are unboxing photos and few with any wear n' tear.

I'm considering among the following leather: Distressed Smooth, British Tan CXL, Olive CXL, Natural CXL, Burgundy CXL, Brown Waxed Flesh, Cinnamon Waxed Flesh

To give my background, I work with leather as a hobby and sell small goods on various forums (watch straps, wallets, key chains, etc...) and have done so for over a decade. So naturally, I'm really into leather.

Couple of questions for Whites owners, I'd appreciate anything you can contribute:

1) Distressed Smooth - does this leather every lose that chalky feel and pick up more of a gloss?
2) Whites CXL - loose/inconsistent grain issues? (I don't currently have CXL in my collection, but 95% of Wolverines in CXL look like crap in a week imo - different brands, so I'm not judging Whites on Wolverines reputation)
3) I'm planing on lining the boots and I've read that the tan lining will stain your socks. One-off issue, or common?
4) Is anyone able to post some unstructured toe pictures of their Whites?
5) Those with the MP Service boot with Dainites, how are the soles holding up? I owned a pair of AEs and the Dainites seemed to wear pretty quickly (I commute maybe 3 miles walking each day and wore them 2-3 days a week).
6) Brown Bison - I have a hide of this at my house and work with it all the time, it's on of my all time favorites. However, I've seen some from Whites where the grain used is awful (I understand- waste not, have to make money, etc...). How are yours holding up?

Thank you to all for 900 pages of entertainment/inspiration

I can only help with 2 questions, but here's my insight:
2) Whites CXL - loose/inconsistent grain issues? (I don't currently have CXL in my collection, but 95% of Wolverines in CXL look like crap in a week imo - different brands, so I'm not judging Whites on Wolverines reputation)
From everything I have seen personally on my boots and heard from others talking about theirs, White's seems to have some of the best CXL clicking in the industry. Mine were clicked phenomenally and the creasing is as good as you could hope to get with CXL. They're light years better than brands like Wolverine and Alden who can't click CXL to save their lives.
5) Those with the MP Service boot with Dainites, how are the soles holding up? I owned a pair of AEs and the Dainites seemed to wear pretty quickly (I commute maybe 3 miles walking each day and wore them 2-3 days a week).
I have two pairs of MPs, both with Dainite soles and both are still in great shape. My oldest pair is a year old and after a year of steady wear they've still got loads of life in them. I'm a huge fan of Dainite because of how my pair's soles are holding up. At the rate they're wearing, I expect to have 4 or so years on them, but that's just my personal wear and walking habits.

 

[hoppy_IPA]

@linafelt those Natty BH's look terrific!

 

[miggyramone]

Am I mistaken? When you request a half sole, White's puts in a half-slip or second layer leather midsole to attach the half sole on?

 

[Phalanx]

Am I mistaken? When you request a half sole, White's puts in a half-slip or second layer leather midsole to attach the half sole on?

They put a second leather midsole on yeah.

 

[occytron]

Just snagged a pair of cap toe MP boots in #8 leather from the White's store off of eBay for (what I think) was a great deal. Have a few pair of RWs (Iron Ranger, 875, 4563) and am really looking forward to the step up in quality to White's. Now, the agonizing wait begins!

 

[mr. burns]

Finally sent off my boots for resole. Gave them a good cleaning and was a little concerned by some parts of the vamp, like maybe I didn't oil it enough recently, or maybe after 4 years it's just time for a rebuild. Maybe they can last and I can wait til the next resole for that. We'll see what they recommend .

 

[Netvine]

Finally sent off my boots for resole. Gave them a good cleaning and was a little concerned by some parts of the vamp, like maybe I didn't oil it enough recently, or maybe after 4 years it's just time for a rebuild. Maybe they can last and I can wait til the next resole for that. We'll see what they recommend .
View attachment 1249052 View attachment 1249053

What kinda Leather is that and what type of product were you using on the vamp? Theyre gonna look spectacular when they come back from Whites btw.

 

[spurs61]

Hi PACostag and everybody else. Not been on the forum much the past few years - work and life too busy.

My natural CXL BH boots remain one of my favorites. They do have an unstructured toe. This makes them quite comfortable, more so I think than my other SDs. I guess they're about 4-5 years and get moderate wear in my rotation. I think they've held up well. Here's a new pic.

Hi all,

New to the site and figured I should introduce myself to the conversation after trolling through all 900 pages of this Whites forum... I'm looking to update my casual boot stash and I've landed on Whites. Full disclosure, I work in a laid-back office, so none of these are will be work boots, although I appreciate the indestructible nature of work boots in my casual footwear. My current stash is below - lots of RWs and some Zamberlans.

I'm mostly leaning towards "6 55 last Bounty Hunters with an unstructured toe. I've seen some photos of similar boots in the 900 prior pages, but not many. Most of the pictures are unboxing photos and few with any wear n' tear.

I'm considering among the following leather: Distressed Smooth, British Tan CXL, Olive CXL, Natural CXL, Burgundy CXL, Brown Waxed Flesh, Cinnamon Waxed Flesh

To give my background, I work with leather as a hobby and sell small goods on various forums (watch straps, wallets, key chains, etc...) and have done so for over a decade. So naturally, I'm really into leather.

Couple of questions for Whites owners, I'd appreciate anything you can contribute:

1) Distressed Smooth - does this leather every lose that chalky feel and pick up more of a gloss?
2) Whites CXL - loose/inconsistent grain issues? (I don't currently have CXL in my collection, but 95% of Wolverines in CXL look like crap in a week imo - different brands, so I'm not judging Whites on Wolverines reputation)
3) I'm planing on lining the boots and I've read that the tan lining will stain your socks. One-off issue, or common?
4) Is anyone able to post some unstructured toe pictures of their Whites?
5) Those with the MP Service boot with Dainites, how are the soles holding up? I owned a pair of AEs and the Dainites seemed to wear pretty quickly (I commute maybe 3 miles walking each day and wore them 2-3 days a week).
6) Brown Bison - I have a hide of this at my house and work with it all the time, it's on of my all time favorites. However, I've seen some from Whites where the grain used is awful (I understand- waste not, have to make money, etc...). How are yours holding up?

Thank you to all for 900 pages of entertainment/inspiration

 

[mr. burns]

What kinda Leather is that and what type of product were you using on the vamp? Theyre gonna look spectacular when they come back from Whites btw.

Distressed smooth with Obenauf's oil and heavy duty LP.

 

[Netvine]

Distressed smooth with Obenauf's oil and heavy duty LP.

That smooth leather from whites is tough as nails. I love my brown smooth boots, I use HDLP as well on smooth leather. I hate wet socks. I also clean/treat periodically with saphir renovateur. Its really worth it. I apply some of that when my camp gets like that and buff it smooth with a horsehair brush.

 

[hoppy_IPA]

@spurs61 - i swear the older natty cxl is better than the newer stuff i keep seeing. lighter in color & without dark splotching. perhaps this a product of wear & aging but in any case those look great! totally agree about the soft toe - once you experience it everything else feels less comfortable.

@mr. burns & @Netvine - do y'all use your boots in very wet conditions such as rainy/brushy enviroments? i really like HDLP for leather soles/edges/welts but even on my works boots i steer clear of it on the uppers. for me it darkens the leather way too much & is simply overkill.
I was in ankle deep water wrapping a gas line last month and didn't get a drop of water on my socks:

in case anyone (isn't) wondering, that was a byproduct of the water company breaking one of their mains during an excavation:

 

[Netvine]

@spurs61 - i swear the older natty cxl is better than the newer stuff i keep seeing. lighter in color & without dark splotching. perhaps this a product of wear & aging but in any case those look great! totally agree about the soft toe - once you experience it everything else feels less comfortable.

@mr. burns & @Netvine - do y'all use your boots in very wet conditions such as rainy/brushy enviroments? i really like HDLP for leather soles/edges/welts but even on my works boots i steer clear of it on the uppers. for me it darkens the leather way too much & is simply overkill.
I was in ankle deep water wrapping a gas line last month and didn't get a drop of water on my socks:
View attachment 1249447

Working outside here on a ranch on the northcoast, its all wet and moldy all year. Mucking stalls, walking through water, mud and the occasional rogue wave at the beach. I admit, just being diligent daily with lexol cleaner, removing mud and any chemical or acidic stuff would be enough To keep them serviceable for 30+ years without HDLP.

My smooth BH are only 6” and so they don't save me from a soaking if i walk through deep water. Or when my foot goes too far into mud and muck.

It is my experience that if do not use HDLP on the vamp the toes in my socks are soaked through within minutes of just walking through wet grass in the A.M. This is with soft toe, unlined Brown smooth bounty hunters. Perhaps you have structured or steel toes that reduce permeability?

 

[Netvine]

Btw, Im very happy with the level of water resistance provided by the pommadier cream polish I use on my cap toe HHSD. I dont want the board to think Im using HDLP on dress leathers!

 

[hoppy_IPA]

Working outside here on a ranch on the northcoast, its all wet and moldy all year. Mucking stalls, walking through water, mud and the occasional rogue wave at the beach

i figured you were putting them through some quite damp conditions. pheasant hunting was always the crucible for me. knee deep snow covered grass and hiking through it for miles. I've never met a pair of boots that could keep the moisture out. I don't hunt anymore but ive learned a lot since then. Id use HDLP in that case as well along with better (white's) boots.